5 Factor Journal: Conclusion...and giveaway!

The entire final Olympic weekend was a blur. All I can remember was Sid’s goal and giant beavers and Nickelback’s cheesy pyro and the mobs downtown and the fact that despite not sleep much from Friday to Sunday, somehow I was upright by Monday morning. Part of it is adrenaline for sure. And total fear of failure. But it’s also staying sober for 17 days. And not eating like sh-t.

I had my 5 Factor yoghurt parfait for breakfast, lunches were either shrimp quinoa salads (I LOVE quinoa) and tomato soup or shrimp wraps and for dinner one night I had an amazing piece of fish which wasn’t dry, even after heating it up in the microwave and normally cooked fish is tricky for me except for black cod only this wasn’t black cod it was sole and it was light and fresh and juicy and it sustained me on Saturday night when I had to cover Pamela Anderson’s carpet for etalk and managed not to spray her down with Lysol.

The snacks make all the difference. Apple and almond shavings, cheese and grapes and nuts, mini salads, veggies and hummus, my favourite chocolate muffin that does the job of several chocolate chip cookies...

Jacek and I were fighting over some of the packages. He is now committed to trying it out himself and when I return from the Oscars, we’ll be on the meal plan together. He’s finally convinced it’s not “bird food”.

Please note:

I paid full price for my 5 Factor Trial. There is NO advertising arrangement happening here. With the schedule I was maintaining during the Olympics, I didn’t want to worry about health, and food, and, frankly, putting on weight. I’m supposed to wear a gown next Sunday for the Oscars. I couldn’t afford to let my sh-t go for 17 days and show up in LA bloated and haggy. Going forward we will continue to be paying clients of Licious Living.

Having said that, in response to your overwhelming interest, I did approach Licious Living for a giveaway prize. We would like to close out this feature by offering one reader a chance to try it.

If you live in Vancouver or Toronto (postal codes starting in M or V) and are interested in trying the plan, Licious Living will deliver your meals to you for 2 weeks. To enter the draw email [email protected] with Licious Living as the title before midnight Pacific on Friday, March 5th, 2010. Standard contest terms apply. Right now, Licious Living is only available in those two cities. Demand is everything. If you are interested in having them expand to your neighbourhood, you should contact them and let them know.

After we started our posts the folks at Penguin Books got in touch with us and offered up 5 copies of Harley’s 5 Factor World Diet. If you’re interested in that, email [email protected] with 5 Factor as the title before end of day Friday as well. Standard contest terms apply. If you live in Vancouver or Toronto and enter the first draw you don’t need to enter this one. We’ll pool the entries together for the book draw. Good luck!

And finally, many of you have asked if I’ve lost weight. I’m reluctant to say because it shouldn’t be about that. 5 Factor is not sold as a weight loss program. It’s a proper eating program. And if weight loss ensues, fine, but changing habits is much more important. And regularity! And choosing yoghurt and granola mornings. And how to manage my sweet tooth. You’ll note that the 5 Factor meal plan includes many carbohydrates. It’s not a system that reduces carbs completely only to see you crash back onto them later like many other unrealistic diets. In truth, if I’ve lost weight it’s probably because I never slept. And while there was no time for the gym, I did probably walk 3k a day back and forth from studio to the arenas and sometimes even home. In the end, it’s about how you feel. I feel really great. So great that Jacek has thanked me for not freaking out on him. Not even once. No snapping, no yelling, no tantrums, and no hang ups. He’s walking around in a state of shock.

Attached – perhaps the highlight for Dan Levy and me. We ran into Michelle Kwan at the Club Bud party on Friday night. Michael Phelps must be really confused about how I can be standing next to myself.